


345 Days.

by Fizzkiz



Category: Ancient Greek Religion & Lore
Genre: Angst, Claustrophobia, Tight Spaces
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-12
Updated: 2020-09-12
Packaged: 2021-03-07 02:15:23
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,508
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26429239
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fizzkiz/pseuds/Fizzkiz
Summary: The Greek God of War, Ares, sits in a jar.He stays there alone, the only company being his own thoughts.Even those aren't enough.
Comments: 5
Kudos: 35





	345 Days.

**Author's Note:**

> Hahejdhe hi!! Uh. I know my writing gets kinda drone-y and shit sometimes so 🥴 oop- but I still enjoy writing nonetheless!! I want and need more Ares content so I made my own. 
> 
> Possible tw for like...hints of starvation and stuff?? Idrk eep its kinda short too sorry 😔😔

A year.

It had been a _year._

A grueling year of pure darkness. Isolation. The only noise, or even _semblance_ of company, were the voices outside. Muffled, sure, but they were there, providing little comfort. 

Tally marks littered the inside of the vase Ares sat in. His sword was gone, but he'd managed to save his xiphos. Through the darkness, he engraved lines in the vase. He couldn't exactly see them, but he knew they were there. He remembered them all.

Every.

Single.

Line.

354 lines. 354 days.

354 days, he'd been sitting here. Alone. Forgotten. 

Rotting.

Sadly enough, Ares was used to this. The blatant dismissal of himself. This was definitely something new, but he wasn't shocked that this had happened. Nobody seemed to care when things happened to him. It was just a fact of life.

He'd been told to "Suck it up." his whole life. So that's what he did. He sucked it up. Ares learned from a young age to never tell anyone about his issues. To never show that he was upset. When he did, he got criticized for it. And that hurt. 

Especially coming from a parent. He got it from everyone, but Zeus seemed to be the cruelest when it came to it. So to prevent the hurt, Ares put his walls up. He learned to shove it all down, to leave it alone until it all tried to claw its way back up again. And it seemed to work.

The only reason he'd even decided to come to the front lines was for validation. Just the _thought_ of an ounce of attention. It was just two giants, he totally could have taken them alone! Ephialtes and Otus didn't seem _too_ powerful.

But they'd caught him off guard. They'd snatched him up, and tossed him in this jar. Ares had been wrong. _Gods,_ what a fool he had been. His morals clouded by selfishness. 

Now he was stuck here, his family not caring. What else was new? He was the laughingstock of Olympus. Everybody brushed him off. His own mother stood by and let it all happen. Nobody cared when it was Ares. It was apparent.

Had it been anybody else, it would have been taken care of immediately. But not him. They probably wanted a reason to get rid of him. 

Ares tried to curl up on the bottom of the Vase. He was still a bit too big to do this completely, though. So he curled up, resting against the side of the jar. 

It was hot and muggy. The thing hadn't been opened since he'd gotten tossed into it. Gods didnt "need" anything, but they still yearned for things. They still indulged in mortal activities. And Ares really just wanted to get a breath of fresh air.

He sighed, closing his eyes and pulling his cape over him. At least he had that as some sort of comfort. 

He then attempted to doze off. That's what he had been doing there to pass the time, besides sitting there in thought. He liked escaping in dreams. Morpheus granted him nice ones, most times. He'd even spoken to him, once. Told him to not give up.

Pfft. Jokes on him, because Ares was a fighter. He didn't _know_ how to give up. He'd been trying to escape every single day, despite nothing happening each time. 

He was about to slip into unconsciousness when he heard a noise.

It was...shuffling. _Footsteps._ **Voices.**

He bolted up, scrambling to put his ear against the jar. He was weakened by a lot, so even getting up like this was hard, but he was determined, the fire ignited once more.

It had been flickering, getting smaller by the day. But this was just what it needed to come back as _firey_ as before. 

The man held his breath, listening. He could get out. _He could get out._ He silently hoped, trembling with fearful anticipation. He just wanted out. He needed to see the sunlight again.

\\\

Hermes and Artemis had snuck into the living quarters of the two giants, Hermes hovering above the ground as to make no noise. Artemis was near silent, like a doe in the woods. 

"Do we even _know_ where he is??" Hermes turned to her, motioning in her direction.

"Not necessarily. We know he's here, though. Apollo said so." Artemis replied to him, keeping her voice low. 

"Yeah, yeah, and ' _Apollos always right'_ " Hermes did air quotes, rolling his eyes and getting a mocking tone. 

" _Keep your voice down,_ " Artemis hissed, giving him a look. 

"Alright, geez! No need to get all pissy over it. After all, _I_ know what I'm doing. After all, I'm the one who stole cattle without anyone batting an eye." Hermes smirked, laying down and putting his hands behind his head.

"That doesn't necessarily mean it was a _good_ job." Artemis muttered, rolling her eyes. 

"Hey!" Hermes squawked, offended. He'd thought he'd done a pretty good job. If he could outsmart _Apollo,_ he could outsmart anyone.

Hermes heard Artemis start to retort, but then they heard a noise. Hermes snapped his head in the direction, and he felt Artemis do the same.

" _Go._ "

"Yep, yep- I'm going-" Hermes whizzed off, before the situation could escalate. 

He touched down deeper inside the cave, pulling his chlamys around himself and fixing his hat. He did a 360, whistling and looking around. Nothing seemed too out of the ordinary. It was just a normal old living dwelling. Everything was bigger in size, though, since they were giants.

"Damn. Wonder how big this makes their dicks, then," Hermes commented, but then cackled.

"Fuck! How would that even work? How _big_ is a giants dick? Can you even say they have little dicks? Is it as big as me? Can I say I'm the size of someones dick? If so, that'd be fuckin wild. Talk about big dick energy." Hermes put his hands behind his head, chuckling. 

Then he stopped. "Would _I_ fit I-"

"... _Yeah,_ fuck that. Nope." He continued, cracking his neck.

He soon grew bored, so he started kicking rocks and skipping around, looking in random nooks and crannies.

" _Ares!_ Aphneios? Enyalius?" He looked under a table, then into a pyxis, that had its lid off.

"...Mars?" He looked up and around, having been standing on a shelf. There was a moment or so of silence, but then he wheezed, leaning against the pyxis.

"I don't even- I don't even _know_ a Mars!" He laughed, putting his hand over his face. While he was amusing himself, he heard a small tapping, and he perked his wings up, ceasing the laughter.

"...Huh. Totally not mysterious at all." He hopped off the shelf, fluttering to the ground. He turned a corner, sliding his hand across the leg of a chair as he did so. 

Then he came across a vase, it being chained to the ground. 

"And _that_ totally isn't suspicious either!" He pointed at it, putting his hands on his hips.

"Whaddya think you're doing here chained up, totally-not-suspicious jar?" He jumped up, hovering over to it. He tugged on the chains, but they were definitely stuck there tight. These two giants were actually pretty smart.

For...Well, giants. Giants were never too clever. 

" _Hermes!_ " A hiss came from the jar, and Hermes jumped about twenty feet.

"What the fuck, dude, they've even got one that knows my _name?_ Now that's creepy as fu-"

"No, you bumbling idiot, it's Ares!" 

"...The jar? How could a jar be named Ares? Unless its-" Hermes then gasped

"Oh, shit, _Ares!_ Dude, you're alive! Kinda thought you were long gone, for a sec. I mean, not that I _care,_ but-"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever, just get me out of this thing!" His voice sounded hoarse and quiet. It had that same tone of aggression it always did, but he seemed...different. Hermes couldn't put his finger on it. 

"Right. Uh...lemme fuck with these things, then." Hermes shrugged it off, pushing the worry aside. It was Ares, he was a trooper. He'd be fine.

\\\

Ares sat there, listening to the chains clatter and clink together as Hermes fiddled to them.

His heart was racing as he sat there and waited. He didn't know if Hermes was here alone or not, but he didn't want to think about what could happen if they got caught. He just wanted out.

He wondered if Aphrodite was worried at all. He really hoped she was. At least he'd have _someone_ thinking about him, regardless if she were married or not. He wanted nothing more than to see her face again.

He was almost starting to forget it. He loved her dearly, and the fact that the memories could be slipping freaked him out. 

But he never could forget that smile. The way it revealed the bronze glow in her cheeks. Aphrodite was a tall, plump woman, her skin a beautiful umber brown, much like some of the orchids that littered the ground around Mount Olympus. 

Her eyes were an extravagant brown. A near burgundy color, almost. He couldn't compare anything else to them. They were just...beautiful. 

He smiled. He only smiled when thinking about her, anymore. He would have daydreamed and yearned the whole rest of the day, but chains clattering to the ground interrupted the pining. He jumped, whirling around.

He bit the inside of his cheek. He didn't know why, but he was fearful. He'd been in here for so long, he couldn't think of anything else anymore.

Then the lid rattled, and then it was lifted off, a curious Hermes peeking down at him. He saw him visibly wince, sucking in air through his teeth.

"Sssssh _heesh,_ dude, you good? Are you gonna be able to get up?" He was hovering over the mouth of the jar, looking almost mildly uncomfortable. 

Ares just grunted, the walls going back up. He pushed himself off of the ground, immediately teetering and falling against the edge of the jar. His legs ached, wanting to give in. But he refused to let them.

He inhaled sharply, his body shaking as he attempted to stay up, using the side as support. 

"...Man, just let me h-"

" _I don't need your pity._ " Ares snapped, struggling.

He managed to stand, his head spinning. As he looked up, he realized how bright it was. It wasn't even that light in the cave, but he couldn't help but wince. 

Ares put his hands on the edge of the jar, and started trying to hoist himself up. He had little luck, slipping and letting out a noise of shock. But luckily Hermes grabbed his arm before he could hit the bottom, and pulled him up and out.

"Yuh weigh _nothin_ dude, jeez-" Hermes set him down, touching down himself. 

"Hm," Ares grunted again.

\\\

Hermes looked up at Ares, who seemed disoriented. He was obviously taking it all in, just standing there and swaying from side to side. 

Ares was gaunt and pallid, his bronze skin a sickly pale. Hermes...hated it. He hated seeing him like this. As much as he liked to tease him and give him shit, this was too far. He always thought it was all in good fun, because Ares always played along. But this was a dawning realization.

He looked tired. Numb. He was so _thin._ Ares wasn't the type to show weakness, physical or mental. But he seemed like he might break at any moment. His appearance was cadaverous in nature, and he couldn't even stand straight.

Ares was a prideful man. He had perfect posture, always. Even when upset. Hermes was honestly scared, seeing him this way. It was off putting. His wavy brown hair, once curling around his face, was now almost to the level of his chin. His beard was longer than it had been as well. 

His scars were nearly invisible because of how pale he was. Hermes knew he needed to get him to Apollo, but he hadn't a clue where Artemis was. 

"...Here, Ares, you're gonna fall-" Hermes hovered up a bit, making Ares lean against him for support. 

Ares attempted protest, but failed. He just leaned against Hermes, his crimson red eyes now a dull brick color. 

"I know you're tired, dude, but don't fall asleep. You've gotta stay up," Hermes muttered to him, his arm wrapped around his older brother.

\\\

Ares rested against Hermes, wheezing softly. He couldn't believe it. 

He was out. He was really, truly out. Helped by Hermes. The cool cave air was crisp and humid. But it was fresh. He didn't care if it was musty. It was air. _Cool_ air. 

He'd never been so grateful for anything. He was so lost in his emotions, he didn't even notice the tears rolling down his cheeks. 

Ares sobbed, the shock setting in. He couldn't believe it. He'd been left there. Forgotten. Nobody cared about Ares. He was the black sheep amongst the Olympians.

He started sinking to the floor, and Hermes helped him sit down. He could feel the younger gods unease, but he didn't care. He deserved to finally cry. 

"Ares. Dude, it's alright, you're fine." Hermes reassured, sitting in front of him. Ares nodded, hiccuping and sobbing. 

"Y-You- You j- L-" Ares sputtered. The war god was pitiful, reduced to a frail, sobbing mess. He heard no response from Hermes. He didn't care. He didn't expect him to. 

He sat there, crying. Eventually he flung himself onto Hermes, hugging him with what little strength he had left. He just hid his face against him, getting him too wet with tears. 

"...There, there, big guy. It's fine. You're fine." 

Ares felt Hermes pat his back. Even this was enough to midly comfort him. He just needed support.

Soon after this, there was a clatter, and two thuds. Ares hiccuped, looking up. Hermes looked over, as well.

"There. They're both dead, now." Artemis walked over, hands in her pockets. 

Ares watched her furrow her eyebrows at the sight of him. He felt a twang of shame. He just let go of Hermes, sitting up and wiping his face off on his arm. He was good at pulling himself together quickly. 

"...I'm sure Apollo can help with your state. But let's go, you look like you're going to collapse from exhaustion."

\\\

So that's what they did, Artemis and Hermes helping Ares up. They teleported to Olympus, and there Ares finally succumbed to the effects of the capture.

Apollo had instantly hurried over and brought him to his room, and Aphrodite had hurried behind soon after.

Hermes stuck his hands in his pockets, deep in thought. He wondered what Ares had been thinking, that whole time.

He couldn't even begin to imagine. And he certainly didn't want to. But the whole situation left a sour taste in his mouth.

Maybe it was time to change his attitude twoard him. He probably needed a friend.

Seeing the God of War in a state like that definitely did things to you.


End file.
